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Chapter 1
Jamie
At ten a.m. today, my life was going to change.
I’d either be able to stay in New York and pay my rent or be forced to leave and face my past. The outcome of the second round of interviews I was getting ready for would dictate that fate.
I needed that job like air to breathe.
I studied my effort to look professional on the reflection of a shop I would never afford to set foot in, waiting to cross the street. The mannequin in the window seemed to mock me. I sighed, hoping no one could read through the façade of the wannabe fancy clothes and colored lipstick I had put on to hide my fear.
Straightening the perfectly pressed fabric of my suit jacket, I took another deep breath I hoped infused me with the amount of courage and determination I needed to survive this day. I needed it all and then some.
AD Architects was a high-end, world-renowned architectural firm founded and run by the one and only Adrian Dornier.
The man was a legend.
He had forged his way to the top with nothing but hard work and disruptive designs, setting himself amongst the biggest names in the industry. Nothing an inexperienced nobody like me would ever find intimidating.
I couldn’t help but shrink a little at that daunting thought.
Who am I trying to fool? I will never make it through.
There was more than the status of the man I was about to meet shaking my confidence, though. That kind of self-sabotage ran deeper than just the nerves that preceded a life-changing interview.
There was this constant, familiar voice I’d hear. Diminishing and degrading, as always. It was far away now, but it still kept tearing me and my dreams to pieces, whispering my determination into oblivion. Bad memories and a traumatic past weren’t space or time bound. No matter how many miles I had put between us, those thoughts were part of my essence.
I squeezed my eyes shut, forcing myself to remember that I had passed the first round. I must have done something right!
Besides, I had run out of options. There was no way out besides back, and that would be my last resort even though fate seemed to be forcing my hand.
Living, or should I say surviving, in New York City on the miserable paycheck from the 7-Eleven I was working at was damn near impossible. Never mind now that it had suddenly closed down last week without any notice.
I had been here for three months already, and my bank account wouldn’t be able to support another if I didn’t find a decently paid job.
So saying today was a big deal was a huge understatement.
This was my new start. Being who and what I wanted to be, far away from ghosts that were still pretty much alive and well.
Focus, Jamie! Leave the past where it belongs and focus on the future.
I held my head high, balancing the best I could on these heels, aiming for graceful but settling for not falling while making my way through the busy streets of New York.
"Shit. Nine-thirty already," I hissed to myself as I tapped on my phone for the hundredth time in the last ten minutes. I could swear all the damn lights were turning red against me.
Finally the freaking light turned, and I resumed my bee-line between the swamp of people crowding the streets. A ping of an incoming email caught my attention. All those soul-crushing thoughts of self-doubt and unworthiness came rushing back, no permission needed.
My heart sank to my feet as I saw it. It was from AD Architects. Surely no good news could come from an email right before an interview.
I warily opened it, my eyes glued to the slow device as I rapidly swerved between the oceans of people. I expected to see a dismissal or information that the position had been filled while forcing my hopes to tell me otherwise.
‘Dear Jamie, we’re looking forward–’
I could hardly get past the greeting before I slammed into what seemed to be a stone wall. The impact was so violent that I was thrown back, immediately stumbling to the ground.
This will definitely hurt tomorrow!
Just before my ass hit the ground, I felt a strong pull around my waist lifting me up.
